Supporting the fragile employment market in Libya

Increasing prospects in the private sector

Political unrest and unstable security in Libya means that for many people in the country, employment prospects are low. The economy in Libya relies heavily on the precarious international oil market and there has been little diversification activity to raise prospects outside of this.

A difficult place to earn a living

It is estimated that public sector employees make up over 80% of the workforce in Libya with 10% of these being in the oil industry. Additionally, there are between 300,000 and 500,000 unemployed. This polarisation of the job market would appear to leave little room for the people of Libya to make a better life for their families in what is already a difficult and volatile place to live.

Giving support where it's needed

Working as part of a consortium alongside our partners Upper Quartile, our experts have been providing technical assistance on a three year Arab Partnership (joint DFID and FCO) funded project to develop a more competitive private sector and help address the problems faced by Libyans seeking work.

To support this development the team is focussing on strengthening the capacity of key Libyan institutions including Libya Enterprise (Libya’s national small & medium enterprise (SME) agency), Libya’s Chambers of Commerce and the Libyan Ministry of Labour’s Job Centres. The aim is to improve opportunities, facilitate access to jobs, support new business ideas and develop employment support services such as job centres. This will ultimately give many Libyans the help they need to build a brighter future for themselves.

Speaking about the project’s achievements so far Gavin Jones, Managing Director, Upper Quartile said, ‘Working in partnership with WYG we have been able to develop excellent value for our client. Our ability to support fragile economies, complimented by the breadth and depth of WYG’s multidisciplinary offering has proved to be a great combination. If I had to single out a particular strength it would be the first class Duty of Care and project management. This has given the team the confidence they need to work through the political and security difficulties and make a difference to the people of Libya’.

Seeing results in action

The project is made up of a number of schemes which although varied, can all demonstrate visible improvements to the employment market in Libya. Designing a new portfolio of business support services for Libya Enterprise and training their staff is enabling them to support SME development effectively and sustainably. Working with job centres is helping to improve their capacity to match unemployed people to suitable jobs faster. Development of the Tripoli, Misurata, Benghazi and Sebha Chambers of Commerce is allowing private sector businesses to gain access to the support they need to trade profitably and take on more employees.

Going forward the project will build on this great work to drive further positive changes for institutions, businesses and ultimately the people of Libya.